Taking into consideration the popularity of soap operas in Armenia, the authors said it is increasingly obvious that they should have a particular role in forming and constructing gender roles in the Armenian society. The soap operas both reveal and re-shape gender stereotypes. Their images and scenes not only represent social norms but also recreate and popularize them. Soap operas have become distributors of images, characters and also the mainstream of popular culture. In this regard, in Armenia soap-operas have a huge capacity for popularizing certain types of images of masculinity and femininity.
“In many societies it has already been established that media influences people’s beliefs as well as behaviors and that the violence present in media, normalizes the gender-based violence. Researchers in the area believe that the exposure of media violence and aggression contributes to the development of tolerant attitudes, and sometimes even approval, toward violence in actual relationships and everyday life situations. In this sense, soap opera, being part of media, and being circulated over and over nearly every day during the certain periods of time on TV, has the same power and ability to re-construct and re-form the perception of some certain categories revealed in them,” the report says.
According to the researchers in the Armenian mass media male’s verbal and non-verbal means of violence toward not only each other but also toward women are often considered as part of masculinity: “Violent masculinity in our society might be considered a normal and natural rather than an abnormal and unnatural phenomenon. Interestingly, sexuality and love sometimes might also be closely interrelated to violence, even sometimes being necessary part of masculine line. So, masculine standards are often shaped through such categories as brutality, strength, violence, aggression. The presentation of their ugly and violent behavior does not stand for their perception as ugly and violent characters. The protagonist may be violent, hence masculine, sexual and attractive for female figures. And the image of these ‘bad boys’ seems to be circulated in many soap operas. In this sense there is a danger that soap operas will create a false consciousness, making society members believe that whatever they see it should be within the domain of accepted standards of masculinity․”
In order to reveal how Armenian soap operas demonstrate violence as part of masculinity, as well as the attitude toward the phenomenon by the female audience, three Armenian soap operas were analyzed by Kojoyan and Gevorgyan – “Shadows from the Past” («Անցյալի ստվերներ»), “The Dearest Enemy” («Հարազատ թշնամի»), and “911.”
Based on the findings of the research, in the soap operas above, most of the male characters are depicted as aggressive and violent and are endowed with aggressive masculine features. The researches also found that violence toward women is presented as an inseparable part of male masculinity, that is, the borders of gendered violence and masculinity cross. In these stories, not only antagonists but also protagonists are inclined toward gendered violence; and most characters reveal tolerance toward gendered violence. The researchers say the audience misinterprets violent patterns and reveals tolerance to violence in general, and particularly to domestic violence.
Taking into consideration the research results, the researchers make the following suggestions to those who are responsible for these media products — including TV studios, screenwriters, film directors and other individuals and institutions.
– Consider the fact that the family patterns and interpersonal relations that are presented in soap operas will dramatically influence the audience;
– Avoid endowing protagonists with gendered violent behavior;
– Show critical attitude from other characters toward gendered violence;
– Within the frames of soap operas emphasize the importance of law and its legislation that will condemn gendered and domestic violence.
What is hysterical is the use of Turkish words in the scripts. For instance, there was this one episode where the actors continuously used the word ‘baresh’ instead of ‘hushtaveel’. Unbelievable that the writers and actors are not educated enough to know the origin of the words they use…LOL
I couldn’t agree more. I watch a Armenian Comedy series known as ‘Dnpesa’ (house-husband). Although it’s a comedy and I appreciate the humour, the stereotype of an aggressive, chauvinist husband who talks down to his wife all the time and continues to threaten to kill her is a bit too much. For those who have seen the comedy they may be inclined to tell me to calm down because it is in fact a comedy, however, the continuous display of macho, uneducated, violent characteristics portrayed by the male characters is having an effect on future generations in Armenia who watch these shows based on their popularity.
This is only one small part of the toxicity Westernization and Globilization has had on Armenian society not to mention Western style materialism and crony capitalism…
The more you blame others the more stagnate you become.
Avetis – the toxicity that occurs in Armenian TV programs and comedies were present long ago before we put the blame on Western society. Although globalisation has its good and bad sides, I don’t think it’s to blame for the chauvinist or sexist scripts written by Armenian script writers. After all, quite a few post-Soviet nations have similar types of disrespectful humour. Westernisation on the other hand has proven itself to be quite positive in terms of equal rights. But we’re all entitled to our own opinions. But for me the blame on the shameful way women or others (anyone include the Armenian man) are portrayed comes from anywhere but the west!
Sorry Aventis I don’t understand your comment about westernisation. Shouldn’t it be the opposite? Western values include gender equality. Rather, the overbearing Russian influence is what’s driving chauvinism. Nevertheless, our culture is based on European values and this should be reflected in these television programmess.
Don’t take him seriously. He blames everything on the West. Including things that Armenians personally do.
The quality of Armenian television, especially these soap operas, are directly contributing to the decline of Armenia as a nation. Instead of isolating and alienating that sort of degrading, anti-woman, pro-violence, tgetutsyun, the soap operas and their “writers” are putting it on full display and suggesting that that is what an Armenian “man” should be like. This alienates not only those who disagree and do not fit into that idiotic, backwards and self-limiting mold, but more importantly, it limits the role of the woman in Armenian society and overlooks their potential for some lesser idiot with the “right” genitalia.
I would not be surprised if it comes from the top-down. After all, the vast majority of those who subscribe to the themes of these disgusting, uncivilized soap operas are also the ones who are more likely to be against equal rights for women, a more tolerant society and one that does not but into peoples’ personal lives, and more likely to be in favor of hyperconservative, self-limiting, authoritarian leaders like Putin.
Media can act as a catalyst for the degredation of a nation. These soap operas do just that.